Lockdown watch: Nick Broomfield on The Grinch, Pets and Pink Panther
I wish I could send over a list of all the great films I am catching up with during the lockdown: Citizen Kane, Nanook of the North, Battleship Potemkin … However my reality is very different. I am locked down with Charlie, my sevenyear-old son, so my viewing consists of The Secret Life of Pets 2, which I’ve watched at least 10 times (and highly recommend); The Lion King, brilliant; Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle, wonderful; How to Train Your Dragon, Charlie loves it, me less so; Spider-Man, way above my head; The Grinch, brilliant. Occasionally I try to sneak in Planet Earth (20 minutes max for Charlie,
though I love it); Serengeti, though, was a complete bust.
The Pink Panther has been an enormous success, though Charlie particularly identifies with Cato, which has lead to many unexpected attacks off screen. On Netflix there is True and the Rainbow Kingdom, which Charlie loves but is not for me, Danger Mouse and Captain Underpants – again, highly rated by Charlie, but which infuriate me.
After Charlie’s bedtime, by which time I am normally reeling from exhaustion given our athletic activities, I have tried to catch up with my viewing. I loved Jojo Rabbit, Les Miserables, Dark Waters (interesting) and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (loved Brad Pitt). I have watched all of Paweł Pawlikowski’s films (brilliant), The Kingmaker about Imelda Marcos (entertaining and amazing) and Babylon
Berlin (a brilliant idea with lots of promise but ultimately disappointing).
The late-night viewing, though, comes with a heavy price: at 6.30am, my bedroom door opens with “Good morning!” and in rushes Charlie.